System and method for variable sound dampening in an adjustable vehicle seat

ABSTRACT

A vehicle seat includes a first inflatable bladder and a pump fluidically coupled with the first bladder. A sound dampening assembly is fluidically coupled between the first bladder and the pump and includes an inner chamber defined by a first and second telescoping portions and a motor coupled between the first and second telescoping portions. A controller causes the motor to adjust the inner chamber in response to an operation of the pump.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention generally relates to a sound dampening assemblyfor a pneumatically-adjustable vehicle seat. In particular, the sounddampening assembly is adjustable to compensate for a pump operating atvariable speeds.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Advances in automotive acoustics have led to a quieter vehicle interior.Not only are these advances aimed at reducing the noise from the engine,but also toward reducing noises reaching the cabin from externally, suchas road noise and the like. This means that sound emissions from systemsin the interior cabin that run while the vehicle is being driven havebecome more apparent. Accordingly, there is the need to reduce the soundemission of these systems as well.

In vehicles with pneumatically adjustable seats, in which one or morebladders is inflated and deflated to adjust an adjacent portion of theseating surface, the seat adjustment system is one such system that isintermittently active during vehicle use. In particular, the pressuresin the air bladders are controlled through a module with a number ofvalves. Each of these valves can inflate and deflate the bladders thatare connected to this valve. The air pressure is supplied by one or morepumps. The main cause of noise of this system is the pump, but also theair rushing in the tubes and rushing into the bladder can make asignificant amount of additional noise. The frequency of the soundemitted by the pump depends on the speed (measured inrevolutions-per-minute (“RPM”)) of the pump. In some implementations thecontrol systems of such seats may not have one set pump speed, but mayuse multiple speeds, depending on the airflow need at a given instance.Known solutions for filtering or otherwise reducing pump noise withinsuch a pneumatic system can cancel out or reduce a primary frequency forwhich they are tuned but cannot compensate for the use of a pump atvarying speeds or the like.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

According to one aspect of the present disclosure, a vehicle seatincludes a first inflatable bladder and a pump fluidically coupled withthe first bladder. A sound dampening assembly is fluidically coupledbetween the first bladder and the pump and includes an inner chamberdefined by a first and second telescoping portions and a motor coupledbetween the first and second telescoping portions. A controller causesthe motor to adjust the inner chamber in response to an operation of thepump.

According to another aspect of the present disclosure, a seatcustomization system includes a first inflatable bladder and a pumpfluidically coupled with the first bladder. The system further includesa sound dampening assembly fluidically coupled between the first bladderand the pump and including an inner chamber defined by a first andsecond telescoping portions and a motor coupled between the first andsecond telescoping portions. A controller causes the motor to adjust theinner chamber in response to an operation of the pump.

According to another aspect of the present disclosure, a method foradjusting a vehicle seat includes activating a pump at a selected speedfrom a number of selectable speeds to inflate a first bladder andadjusting an inner chamber within a sound dampening assembly that isfluidically coupled between the first bladder and the pump. The innerchamber is adjusted to cancel at least one primary frequency generatedby the pump that varies with the speed thereof.

These and other aspects, objects, and features of the present inventionwill be understood and appreciated by those skilled in the art uponstudying the following specification, claims, and appended drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a front perspective view of a vehicle seat with cutawayportions thereof showing aspects of a seat adjustment system;

FIG. 2 is a perspective cutaway view of a portion of the vehicle seat ofFIG. 1 showing further aspects of the adjustment system as well as asound dampening assembly associated therewith;

FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram of one implementation of the sounddampening assembly;

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of a muffler used in the sounddampening assembly of

FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram of an alternative implementation of thesound dampening assembly; and

FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram of yet another implementation of the sounddampening assembly.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

For purposes of description herein, the terms “upper,” “lower,” “right,”“left,” “rear,” “front,” “vertical,” “horizontal,” “interior,”“exterior,” and derivatives thereof shall relate to the invention asoriented in FIG. 1. However, it is to be understood that the inventionmay assume various alternative orientations, except where expresslyspecified to the contrary. It is also to be understood that the specificdevices and processes illustrated in the attached drawing, and describedin the following specification are simply exemplary embodiments of theinventive concepts defined in the appended claims. Hence, specificdimensions and other physical characteristics relating to theembodiments disclosed herein are not to be considered as limiting,unless the claims expressly state otherwise. Additionally, unlessotherwise specified, it is to be understood that discussion of aparticular feature of component extending in or along a given directionor the like does not mean that the feature or component follows astraight line or axis in such a direction or that it only extends insuch direction or on such a plane without other directional componentsor deviations, unless otherwise specified.

Referring now to FIGS. 1-4, reference numeral 10 generally designates avehicle seat. Vehicle seat 10 includes an inflatable bladder 12, a pump14 fluidically coupled with the bladder 12, and a sound dampeningassembly 16 fluidically coupled between the bladder 12 and pump 14. Inparticular, as shown in FIG. 2, sound dampening assembly 16 can becoupled between pump 14 and a manifold 30 that includes at least onevalve associated with the bladder 12. In an alternative arrangement,sound dampening assembly 16 can be included between manifold 30 (oranother assembly of the aforementioned at least one valve) and bladder12. Sound dampening assembly 16 further includes an inner chamber 18defined by a first telescoping portion 20 and a second telescopingportion 22. A motor 24 is coupled between the first telescoping portion20 and the second telescoping portion 22. Vehicle seat 10 furtherincludes a controller 26 causing the motor 24 to adjust the innerchamber 18 in response to an operation of pump 14.

In one aspect, the above-described operation of pump 14 can be anoperating speed of the pump 14. Such a speed can be controlled bycontroller 26 and can be done to provide a desired flow of air to theabove-mentioned bladder 12, or an arrangement of multiple bladders 12included within vehicle seat 10 and fluidically coupled with pump 14. Inparticular, in one implementation of vehicle seat 10, as illustrated inFIGS. 1 and 2, seat 10 can include multiple bladders 12 throughoutvarious locations of vehicle seat 10. Such bladders 12 can befluidically coupled with pump 14 via a supply line 28 coupled with pump14 and further coupled with a manifold 30 upstream thereof. Manifold 30can, in turn, connect with respective branches 32 that extend fromvarious outlets 34 to respective ones of bladders 12. Manifold 30 caninclude a series of valves therein that can control the flow of airreceived from pump 14 through various ones of branches 32 in accordancewith a desired adjustment or inflation mode with respect to bladders 12.In one example, various ones of bladders 12 can be inflated eitherindividually or collectively, depending on an inflation mode implementedby the occupant of seat 10. In this manner, the amount of air requiredby pump 14 may vary in accordance with the respective sizes of thebladders 12 being filled, as well as the number of bladders 12 beingfilled at any given time. Still further various controllers 26associated with vehicle seat 10 may provide for different inflationspeeds that may correspond with a faster massage action or may otherwisebe needed when implementing massage over a large area or multiple areas.Still further, such variable speeds may allow for a user to rapidly filla desired bladder 12 or bladders 12 for desired adjustments to seat 10,while providing additional fine-tuning modes.

In any of the scenarios just described, it may be found to beadvantageous to vary the speed of pump 14 by way of the particularsignal and/or power provided by controller 26 thereto. In one example,pump 14 can be a four-chamber diaphragm pump, in which a pump motor 36included within pump 14 drives the rotation of an implement that actson, for example, four diaphragms in series to compress the respectivediaphragms, thereby initiating a flow of air from out of pump 14. Thedirection of the flow of air out of pump 14 is maintained by a series ofvalves within pump 14. In this manner, increasing the speed of air flowfrom out of pump 14 can include increasing the speed of pump motor 36,which, in turn, increases the frequency by which the included diaphragmsare compressed. This results in a change in an output frequency of noisegenerated by pump motor 36, as well as the frequency by which theincluded valves operate.

In this manner, controller 26 can cause motor 24 to adjust inner chamber18 by driving motor 24 to change a length 38 of inner chamber 18 tocancel at least one primary frequency of the operation of the pump 14that varies with the speed of the pump 14. As described above suchoperational characteristics can include both the primary operationalfrequency of pump motor 36, as well as or in addition, to the frequencyof operation of any valves included within pump 14. In this manner, andas described further below, sound dampening assembly 16 may include astructure, examples of which are discussed further below, that act toreduce noise by utilizing resonance principles to develop sound waveswithin inner chamber 18 that act to cancel out sound waves at aparticular frequency by shifting the phase of an identical frequency tooppose the frequency to be canceled. Because, as presently described,pump 14 is operated by controller 26 at variable speeds, inner chamber18 is also made adjustable, such as by adjusting the length 38 thereofto, correspondingly, vary the ability of sound dampening assembly 16 toappropriately shift the phase of the desired frequency of pump 14.

As shown in FIG. 2, both pump 14, manifold 30, and sound dampeningassembly 16 can be positioned within vehicle seat 10. In the illustratedembodiment, pump 14 and manifold can be positioned within a cushioncavity 40 defined in an interior of the cushion 42 of vehicle seat 10.In further embodiments, at least one of the pump 14 and manifold 30 canbe included in a similar cavity within the seatback 50. Still further,at least the pump 14 can be located remote from seat 10 within theassociated vehicle (such as within the trunk, for example). As shown,cushion 42 can include an internal frame 44 to which at least pump 14and manifold 30 can be mounted (mounting within the seatback 50 may besimilarly achieved). In this manner, it may further be advantageous tomount portions of sound dampening assembly 16 to frame 44; however, therigidity of supply line 28, for example, may sufficiently retain sounddampening assembly 16 within a desired location with respect to cushioncavity 40. As further shown, pump 14, sound dampening assembly 16, andmanifold 30 may be positioned beneath a carrier 46 that may be mountedwith additional portions of frame 44 to define the general shape of theseating surface of cushion 42 as well as to support one or more bladders12 associated therewith. In this manner, a coverstock 48 may besupported at least by portions of frame 44 as well as by carrier 46 soas to conceal the interior features of seat 10, thus described, as wellas to provide the desired appearance and feel of seat 10, including ofcushion 42. Accordingly, the configuration of seat 10, including ofcushion 42, may be altered by adjusting the inflation levels of bladders12 positioned beneath coverstock 48 in order to vary the firmness and/oroutward shape of coverstock 48.

As further shown in FIG. 1, a seatback 50 may be coupled with cushion42, which may include in a generally adjustable manner, and may furtherinclude additional ones of bladders 12 that may also be connected withmanifold 30 for a controlled supply of air to be directed thereto, asprovided by pump 14 in a similar manner to that which is describedabove. Although depicted in connection with and generally described asfeatures of a vehicle seat 10, the seat adjustment system 52, describedherein, and including pump 14, manifold 30, bladders 12, and sounddampening assembly 16 can be used in connection with additional types ofseats, including office chairs or the like, and further can be used inbenches, beds, or additional supportive furniture, as desired. In suchimplementations, various ones of controller 26, pump 14, manifold 30,and sound dampening assembly 16 can be included within the particularseating element or can be external thereto. In general, sound dampeningassembly 16 may be housed in a similar structure to pump 14 whether inthe seating element itself or not, so that the sound emanating from pump14 can best be neutralized.

With attention to FIG. 3, one embodiment of the above-described sounddampening assembly 16 (FIG. 2) incorporates a muffler 54 to define innerchamber 18. As shown, muffler 54 is generally cylindrical in shape anddefines a first end 56 on first telescoping portion 20 and a secondopposite facing end 58 on second telescoping portion 22. In a similarmanner, respective first 60 and second 62 sidewall portions extend awayfrom the respective first and second ends 56 and 58 such that firsttelescoping portion 20 is slidably received within second telescopingportion 22. As shown in FIG. 4, an O-ring 64 can be coupled with eitherfirst telescoping portion 20 or second telescoping portion 22 to helpmaintain a seal within inner chamber 18. As further shown in FIGS. 3 and4, motor 24 is mounted with one of first telescoping portion 20 andsecond telescoping portion 22 via a motor mount 66 extending therefrom.In the embodiment shown, motor mount 66 extends from second telescopingportion 22, however an opposite arrangement is possible. As furthershown, a motor arm 68 is coupled with the opposite of first telescopingportion 20 and second telescoping portion 22 (first telescoping portion20 in the example shown) and is operably coupled with motor 24 such thatoperation of motor 24 in either a forward or reverse direction causesrespective extension or retraction of motor arm 68 with respect theretoto drive extension of first telescoping portion 20 from secondtelescoping portion 22 or, oppositely, retraction of first telescopingportion 20 into second telescoping portion 22. Such movement,accordingly, causes respective increasing and decreasing of length 38 ofinner chamber 18.

As is generally understood, the length 38 of inner chamber 18 serves todetermine a distance between first end 56 and second end 58 of innerchamber 18. In this manner, sound entering inner chamber 18 through aninlet 70 and first end 56 and accordingly, carrying sound waves frompump 14, may reflect off of second end 58 such that the sound wavescarried therein will double-up over those still entering through inlet70. Accordingly, if length 38 of inner chamber 18 is equal to ahalf-phase of the wavelength of such soundwaves (i.e. the inverse of thefrequency), or an appropriate multiple thereof, the sound wavesreflecting off of second end 58 will at least partially cancel the soundwaves entering inner chamber 18 through inlet 70. In this manner, thelength 38 of inner chamber 18 can be adjusted in accordance with thefrequency of operation of pump 14 (e.g. the speed of pump motor 36) toallow sound dampening assembly 16 to cancel at least a portion of thesound generated by pump 14 at varying operational speeds thereof.

In various examples, motor 24 can include an output gear or an outputscrew to appropriately interact with variations of motor arm 68 that maybe in the form of either a gear rack or a power screw, respectively.Further, muffler 54 including first telescoping portion 20 and secondtelescoping portion 22 can be of a rigid, polymeric material such asplastic or the like, although other materials, including various metals,are possible. As shown in FIG. 4, muffler 54 can include additionaldampening material 72, such as foam or the like, which may be adhered tothe respective sidewall portions 60 and 62 of first telescoping portion20 and second telescoping portion 22, as illustrated, and may also beadhered to the respective ends 56 and 58, with appropriate holes thereinfor supply line 28. Such dampening material 72 may serve to dissipate ordampen additional sound frequencies not canceled out by the adjustedlength 38 of inner chamber 18, and may, further, be positioned to notinterfere with the above-described adjusting of length 38 of innerchamber 18. Further, various routing elements can be included withininner chamber 38 to control the flow of sound waves and air within innerchamber in a manner similar to those used in vehicle mufflers.

Turning now to FIG. 5, an alternative embodiment of sound dampeningassembly 16 may include a dual pneumatic-tube arrangement 74 having afirst tube 76 of a fixed length 82, along with a second tube 77 of anadjustable length 86 that branches off from first tube 76 beforerejoining therewith downstream. In general, such arrangements mayfunction using similar principles to the muffler 54 described above. Inparticular, the length 86 of second tube 77 may be greater than acomparative length 82 of first tube 76 by a half-phase of the wavelengthof the sound desired to be dampened thereby, or an odd multiple of suchwavelength. In this manner, sound dampening assembly 16 can bestructured such that first telescoping portion 20 is defined byrespective receptacles 78 a and 78 b branching off from first tube 76 soas to be spaced apart by first length 82. In this manner, receptacles 78a and 78 b can collectively define first telescoping portion 20 of sounddampening assembly 16. Similarly, second telescoping portion 22 can bedefined by a tube body 84 with respective ends received withinreceptacles 78 a, and 78 b in a slidable manner such that a length 86 ofsecond tube 77, defined as a distance through receptacle 78 a, tube body84 and receptacle 78 b can vary by slidable movement of tube body 84with respect to receptacles 78 a and 78 b. In this manner length 86 canbe adjusted with respect to first length 82 such that air moving throughtube body 84 and into receptacle 78 b to join with air through firsttube 76 is appropriately out of phase to achieve cancelation of thesound present upstream of receptacle 78 a.

As further shown in FIG. 5, motor 24 can be mounted with firsttelescoping portion 20, such as by being mounted with receptacle 78 aand can operably engage with a motor arm 68 mounted with secondtelescoping portion 22, such as by extending from tube body 84 such thatoperation of motor 24 can cause extension or retraction of secondtelescoping portion 22 with respect to first telescoping portion 20, ina similar manner to that which is described above with respect to FIGS.3 and 4.

Turning now to FIG. 6, a further embodiment of system 52 is shown inwhich sound dampening assembly 16 includes both the muffler 54, asdescribed above, and the dual tube arrangement 74, also discussed above.In such an embodiment, the muffler 54 and the dual tube arrangement 74can be separately adjusted by controller 26, in a manner similar to thatwhich is discussed above with respect to FIGS. 3 and 4, as well as FIG.5, respectively. In such an arrangement, both the muffler 54 and thedual tube arrangement 74 can be used to reduce and/or cancel soundemanating from pump 14 of the same frequency, with the upstream one ofmuffler 54 and dual tube arrangement 74 (dual tube arrangement 74, asdepicted in FIG. 6) can reduce the pressure of the sound at suchfrequency, with the other of muffler 54 and dual tube arrangement 74serving to further reduce or eliminate the presence of sound at suchfrequency. Alternatively, muffler 54 and dual tube arrangement 74 can beused to reduce or eliminate sound at different frequencies, for example,with dual tube arrangement 74 being utilized to reduce the sound fromthe valves contained in pump 14, and muffler 54 being used to reduce thesound from pump motor 36 (FIG. 1). Other examples of such targeted useof the elements included within sound dampening assembly 16 are possibleand can be tailored based on the particular respective abilities andeffectiveness of muffler 54 and dual tube arrangement 74.

As shown in FIGS. 3-6, the various embodiments of system 52 can includea microphone 88 coupled with controller 26 that can be used to measurethe sound pressure level within system 52 and, more particularly withincushion cavity 40 in the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 2, to implementa feedback loop or the like to dynamically adjust the respective innerchambers 18 within the various implementations of sound dampeningassembly 16 within which it is incorporated. In an example, controller26 can take the signal from microphone 88 and filter such a signal todetermine a primary frequency of the sound being measured by microphone88. Controller 26 can then drive motor 24 to adjust inner chamber 18, asdescribed above, to reduce the pressure level of such frequency, asreflected in the continuing signal received from microphone 88. Such afeedback loop can be implemented by incorporating aproportional-integral controller into the general functionality ofcontroller 26 itself In an alternative, a similar control loop can beimplemented to attempt to reduce an overall sound pressure level asmeasured by microphone 88, including within cushion cavity 40 forexample, without isolating a particular frequency, in an attempt toreduce the overall sound pressure level as measured by microphone 88 toa minimum level. In a further alternative, microphone 88 can be used bycontroller 26 to isolate and/or otherwise determine a primary frequencywithin the signal received from microphone 88 and can calculate orobtain otherwise stored data related to an appropriate length 38 ofinner chamber 18 for reducing or eliminating such frequency and cancontrol motor 24 to directly drive the length 38 of inner chamber 18 tothe calculated or referenced length 38. In a still further alternative,system 52 can be implemented without the use of a microphone 88 byincorporating into memory within controller 26 a pre-programmedrelationship of lengths 38 of inner chamber 18 corresponding with thefrequency of pump motor 36 at various predetermined operating speedsthereof. In this manner, when pump 14 is operated at such predeterminedspeeds, controller 26 can drive motor 24 to adjust the length 38 ofinner chamber 18 to the predetermined length 38 to correlate with theoperating speed by way of the pump speed signal output by controller 26.In such an implementation, controller 26 can limit or otherwise controlthe speed at which pump motor 36 is ramped up to the desired speed tocorrelate with the speed at which motor 24 can adjust the length 38 ofinner chamber 18. Alternatively, controller 26 can implement a slightdelay before activating pump motor 36 at the desired speed to allow forthe desired adjustment of length 38 of inner chamber 18.

In this manner, a method implemented by the above-described system 52according to the variations in FIGS. 3-6, for example, can be directedtoward adjusting a vehicle seat similar to seat 10 depicted in FIGS. 1and 2, and can include activating pump 14 at a selected speed from anumber of predetermined selectable speeds to inflate at least onebladder 12 or a series of bladders 12 connected therewith in accordancewith a command input by an occupant of seat 10 to make a particularadjustment thereof. It is noted that the various predetermined speedscan be at set intervals or can be continuously adjustable within apredetermined range of such speeds. In conjunction with the activationof pump 14, controller 26 can adjust the inner chamber 18 within sounddampening assembly 16 that is, as described above, fluidically coupledbetween bladder 12 and pump 14. In particular, the inner chamber 18 isadjusted to reduce at least one primary frequency generated by pump 14that varies with the speed thereof. In a manner consistent with theembodiments described above, the method can further include adjustingthe inner chamber 18 by moving second telescoping portion 22 withrespect to first telescoping portion 20 or vice versa, which, asdescribed above, can be done by controlling motor 24 that is coupledbetween the first and second telescoping portions 20,22.

As also described above, controller 26 can implement the above-describedmethod by using a microphone 88 in connection with a feedback loop tunedto drive the length 38 of inner chamber 18 to a specific length 38 thatmost effectively reduces an overall sound level within system 52 or mosteffectively reduces a specific frequency. As an alternative, innerchamber 18 can be adjusted by controller 26, according with thevariation of the method, based on a predetermined relationship betweenthe selectable pump speeds of pump 14 and a corresponding desired length38 of inner chamber 18.

It is to be understood that variations and modifications can be made onthe aforementioned structure without departing from the concepts of thepresent invention, and further it is to be understood that such conceptsare intended to be covered by the following claims unless these claimsby their language expressly state otherwise.

For purposes of this disclosure, the term “coupled” (in all of itsforms, couple, coupling, coupled, etc.) generally means the joining oftwo components (electrical or mechanical) directly or indirectly to oneanother. Such joining may be stationary in nature or movable in nature.Such joining may be achieved with the two components (electrical ormechanical) and any additional intermediate members being integrallyformed as a single unitary body with one another or with the twocomponents. Such joining may be permanent in nature or may be removableor releasable in nature unless otherwise stated.

It is also important to note that the construction and arrangement ofthe elements of the invention as shown in the exemplary embodiments isillustrative only. Although only a few embodiments of the presentinnovations have been described in detail in this disclosure, thoseskilled in the art who review this disclosure will readily appreciatethat many modifications are possible (e.g., variations in sizes,dimensions, structures, shapes and proportions of the various elements,values of parameters, mounting arrangements, use of materials, colors,orientations, etc.) without materially departing from the novelteachings and advantages of the subject matter recited. For example,elements shown as integrally formed may be constructed of multiple partsor elements shown as multiple parts may be integrally formed, theoperation of the interfaces may be reversed or otherwise varied, thelength or width of the structures and/or members or connector or otherelements of the system may be varied, the nature or number of adjustmentpositions provided between the elements may be varied. It should benoted that the elements and/or assemblies of the system may beconstructed from any of a wide variety of materials that providesufficient strength or durability, in any of a wide variety of colors,textures, and combinations. Accordingly, all such modifications areintended to be included within the scope of the present innovations.Other substitutions, modifications, changes, and omissions may be madein the design, operating conditions, and arrangement of the desired andother exemplary embodiments without departing from the spirit of thepresent innovations.

It will be understood that any described processes or steps withindescribed processes may be combined with other disclosed processes orsteps to form structures within the scope of the present invention. Theexemplary structures and processes disclosed herein are for illustrativepurposes and are not to be construed as limiting.

What is claimed is:
 1. A vehicle seat, comprising: a first inflatablebladder; a pump fluidically coupled with the first bladder; a sounddampening assembly fluidically coupled between the first bladder and thepump and including an inner chamber defined by a first and secondtelescoping portions and a motor coupled between the first and secondtelescoping portions; and a controller causing the motor to adjust theinner chamber in response to an operation of the pump.
 2. The vehicleseat of claim 1, wherein: the sound dampening assembly is a mufflerhaving first and second facing ends of the chamber defined respectivelyon the first and second telescoping portions; and causing the motor toadjust the inner chamber includes adjusting a distance between the firstand second facing ends.
 3. The vehicle seat of claim 2, wherein themuffler further includes at least one sound dampening material lining atleast a portion of the inner chamber.
 4. The vehicle seat of claim 1,wherein: the sound dampening assembly is a dual-pneumatic tube unitincluding a first tube of a fixed length and a second tube including thefirst and second telescoping portions; and the first and secondtelescoping portions are fluidically coupled together at a first end anda second end of the second telescoping portion.
 5. The vehicle seat ofclaim 4, wherein causing the motor to adjust the inner chamber includesadjusting a length of the second tube.
 6. The vehicle seat of claim 1,wherein: the operation of the pump is a speed of the pump; and thecontroller causes the motor to adjust the inner chamber in response tothe operation of the pump by driving the motor to change a length of theinner chamber to cancel at least one primary frequency of the operationof the pump that varies with the speed of the pump.
 7. The vehicle seatof claim 6, wherein the controller causes the motor to adjust the innerchamber based on a pre-programmed relationship between a pump speedsignal and a corresponding desired length of the inner chamber.
 8. Thevehicle seat of claim 1, further including a microphone positionedadjacent the pump and in communication with the controller, wherein: thecontroller implements a feedback loop using the microphone to causes themotor to adjust the inner chamber in response to the operation of thepump to drive a sound level observed by the microphone toward a minimumlevel.
 9. The vehicle seat of claim 1, wherein: the vehicle seatincludes a cushion and a seatback coupled with the cushion; and the pumpand sound dampening assembly are mounted within the cushion.
 10. A seatcustomization system, comprising: a first inflatable bladder; a pumpfluidically coupled with the first bladder; a sound dampening assemblyfluidically coupled between the first bladder and the pump and includingan inner chamber defined by a first and second telescoping portions anda motor coupled between the first and second telescoping portions; and acontroller causing the motor to adjust the inner chamber in response toan operation of the pump.
 11. The system of claim 10, wherein: the sounddampening assembly is a muffler having first and second facing ends ofthe chamber defined respectively on the first and second telescopingportions; and causing the motor to adjust the inner chamber includesadjusting a distance between the first and second facing ends.
 12. Thesystem of claim 10, wherein: the sound dampening assembly is adual-pneumatic tube unit including a first tube of a fixed length and asecond tube including the first and second telescoping portions; thefirst and second telescoping portions are fluidically coupled togetherat a first end and a second end of the second telescoping portion; andcausing the motor to adjust the inner chamber includes adjusting alength of the second tube.
 13. The system of claim 10, wherein: theoperation of the pump is a speed of the pump; and the controller causesthe motor to adjust the inner chamber in response to the operation ofthe pump by driving the motor to change a length of the inner chamber tocancel at least one primary frequency of the operation of the pump thatvaries with the speed of the pump.
 14. The system of claim 13, whereinthe controller causes the motor to adjust the inner chamber based on apre-programmed relationship between a pump speed signal and acorresponding desired length of the inner chamber.
 15. The system ofclaim 10, further including a microphone positioned adjacent the pumpand in communication with the controller, wherein: the controllerimplements a feedback loop using the microphone to causes the motor toadjust the inner chamber in response to the operation of the pump todrive a sound level observed by the microphone toward a minimum level.16. A method for adjusting a vehicle seat, comprising: activating a pumpat a selected speed from a number of selectable speeds to inflate afirst bladder; adjusting an inner chamber within a sound dampeningassembly that is fluidically coupled between the first bladder and thepump; and wherein the inner chamber is adjusted to cancel at least oneprimary frequency generated by the pump that varies with the selectablespeeds thereof.
 17. The method of claim 16, wherein: the inner chamberis defined by first and second telescoping portions; and adjusting theinner chamber includes moving the second telescoping portion withrespect to the first telescoping portion.
 18. The method of claim 17,wherein the inner chamber is adjusted by controlling a motor coupledbetween the first and second telescoping portions.
 19. The method ofclaim 16, wherein the inner chamber is adjusted by implementing afeedback loop using a microphone to drive a sound level generated by thepump and observed by the microphone toward a minimum level.
 20. Themethod of claim 16, wherein the inner chamber is adjusted based on apredetermined relationship between the number of selectable speeds and acorresponding desired length of the inner chamber.